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Vasectomy and impotence

Key points

A vasectomy is a surgery that only involves keeping the sperm out of the semen.

The procedure won’t affect your sex drive, performance, and ability to become erect.

A vasectomy is reversible.

An estimated
500,000 men undergo a vasectomy in the United States each year, according to
the American Urological Association. A vasectomy is a procedure that
blocks the sperm from mixing with seminal fluid. Without sperm, a woman can’t
get pregnant.

One of the
common concerns for people considering a vasectomy is impotence, or erectile
dysfunction (ED), which is the inability to sustain an erection or ejaculate.
However, the risk for impotency from this procedure is extremely rare. Some men
even report better sex lives after vasectomy, according to the International Federation of
Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO).

How is a vasectomy done?

A vasectomy is a
fast, outpatient procedure, meaning you don’t have to visit the hospital and you
can go home the same day. The doctor may recommend taking two or three days off
from work and avoiding heavy lifting and sexual activity for a week.

The procedure
typically:

takes about 20 minutes or
less

takes place in a doctor’s
office or medical setting

doesn’t involve stitches

involves the use of local
anesthesia

The pain is often
described as minor. Only
2 to 3 percent of men report chronic pain or discomfort after the procedure,
according to FIGO.

Why the procedure won’t cause impotence

The most common
approach is the percutaneous, or no-scalpel vasectomy. Your surgeon will feel
for the area under the scrotum, known as the vas deferens. The vas deferens carries
the sperm that mixes with the ejaculate. They’ll make a hole so they can tie
the vas deferens. This is process won’t affect erections
and your ability to climax.

Erections and climax involve:

stimulating nerves

increasing blood
flow to the penis

creating muscle
contractions

mental stimulation

The vans deferens only affects
the sperm, which the body
will continue to make. Since sperm is common with other cell types, your body
will absorb them naturally.

It’s important to
note that protection against pregnancy isn’t immediate. It takes three months
or 20 ejaculates before the ejaculate is sperm-free.

You’ll need to revisit
the doctor’s office after three months to test for the presence of semen.

Is impotence a risk?

Getting ED from a vasectomy is rare.
The strongest link between ED and vasectomy is mostly mental. Depression
and stress can increase your chances of ED. Those feelings can interfere with
sexual feelings. If you’re concerned about ED and vasectomy, you may find
comfort that there’s almost no connection between the two.

Doctors have
been performing vasectomies since the last 1800s. With more than a hundred
years of research about vasectomies, there’s never been significant evidence that
they cause impotency.

Vasectomy and impotence

According to FIGO, the incidence of impotence was 1.9 in 1,000 men who had a vasectomy and 1.7 in 1,000 in men who hadn’t.

Surgeries linked
to ED involve the prostate or pelvic area. A vasectomy doesn’t involve the
penis, testicles, or other internal organs.

What won’t happen after vasectomy

There’re often misconceptions or
other concerns about vasectomy and side effects. A vasectomy only means that the ejaculate will not
have sperm and can’t fertilize the egg. Sperm makes up less than 3 percent of
your ejaculate. There’s no change in the look, taste, and amount of semen after
a vasectomy.

A vasectomy also won’t:

affect masculinity or sexuality

affect your testosterone levels

change the volume of your ejaculate

damage to other sexual organs

cause severe pain

prevent sexually transmitted
infections (STIs)

According to
the University of Iowa, the report that prostate cancer and
vasectomy is linked has also been disproven.

Ask your doctor
if you have specific questions and concerns. You may feel more relaxed if you address
your concerns before the surgery.

Risks associated with vasectomy

A vasectomy is a minor
procedure, but there are other risks you should be aware of. Call your
doctor right away if there are signs of an infection like bleeding or increasing
pain.

Some immediate problems after
vasectomy include:

bleeding in the scrotum or from the wound

bleeding in the semen

bruising in the scrotum

infection around the cuts

mild pain

swelling

Long-term effects, although less common, include:

persistent pain

fluid buildup in the testicle that causes pain on
ejaculation

pregnancy due to failed vasectomy

swelling of the scrotum

Will a vasectomy reversal affect impotence?

Just as a vasectomy doesn’t
cause ED, a vasectomy reversal won’t either. Testosterone production remains
unaffected during both procedures.

A vasectomy reversal is a surgical
procedure that involves reconnecting the cut ends of the vas deferens. According
to the American
Urological Association, an estimated 10
percent of men who get a vasectomy will look into getting a reversal.

This procedure takes longer than
the vasectomy procedure because it has more steps. It’s possible for you to
have the reversal procedure done even decades after the vasectomy.

Just as it’s important to fully
consider the implications of having a vasectomy, it’s important to think about
the reversal. While the opportunity for reversal is reassuring, an increased
number of reversals will decrease the success rate.

Takeaway

A vasectomy is a method of birth control. Although it’s a low-risk
procedure, it’s possible to get infections, chronic pain, and other
complications after the vasectomy. However, a vasectomy doesn’t directly cause
impotence or affect your sexuality. The body’s process for erections and
climaxing is unrelated to the procedure.

If you’re thinking about having a vasectomy, you may wish to
do the following before undergoing the procedure:

Consider if you’re committed to no longer having
children.

Talk to your partner about your decision and the
long-term effects.

Talk to your doctor about the procedure and side
effects.

Ask what you should bring with you the day of the
procedure, and arrange for someone to drive you home.

Know what the potential side effects are and when you
should call your doctor.

A vasectomy won’t prevent STIs, and it will take three months
or 20 ejaculates before the fluid is sperm-free. You can reverse a vasectomy
many years later if you change your mind about having children.

You asked, we answered

Will I shoot blanks after a vasectomy?

When people say “shooting blanks” they usually mean that they cannot get a woman pregnant because there is no sperm in the ejaculate. That is why men have a vasectomy to prevent pregnancy, but remember that it takes about three months for the sperm to be gone, so you need to use other protection until then. Also, sperm makes up a very small percentage of the volume of the ejaculate (less than 3 percent), so you shouldn’t notice any change in the amount of ejaculate either.